Pleronotus quadridens, Gundlach, 1840

Don E. Wilson & Russell A. Mittermeier, 2019, Mormoopidae, Handbook of the Mammals of the World – Volume 9 Bats, Barcelona: Lynx Edicions, pp. 424-443 : 439

7.

Sooty Mustached Bat

Pleronotus quadridens

French: Ptéronote fuligineux / German: RulRfarbene Schnurrbartfledermaus / Spanish: Pteronotus tiznado

Taxonomy. Lobostoma quadridens Gundlach, 1840 ,

“Cafetal St. Antonio el Fundador,” Canimar, Cuba.

G. Silva-Taboada in 1976 concluded that the description of Lobostoma quadridens by J. Gundlach in 1840 referred to the same species described by J. E. Gray in 1843 as Chilonycteris fuliginosa and consequently should be considered the senior synonym of P. fuliginosus, which was formerly recognized byJ. D. Smith in 1972 in his revision of Mormoopidae . Fossil records of P. quadridens are reported for many islands in the Bahamas, suggesting it had a more extensive distribution in the late Quaternary than today. Two subspecies recognized.

Subspecies and Distribution.

P.q.quadridensGundlach,1840—Cuba.

P. q. fuliginosusJ. E. Gray, 1843 — Jamaica, Hispaniola, and Puerto Rico.

Descriptive notes. Head-body c.40—-44 mm, tail 16-22 mm, ear 14-16 mm, hindfoot 8-10 mm, forearm 35-40 mm; weight 3-6 g. The Sooty Mustached Bat is the smallest species of mormoopid. It might be confused with individuals ofits sister species, Macleay’s Mustached Bat (P. macleayit), given similarity in external morphology and sympatric distribution, but it is slightly smaller. Pelage is distinctly tricolored dorsally and bicolored ventrally. Labionasal plate has small lateral spikes and 3-4 tubercles on margin above each nostril. Skull rostrum is delicate, slightly elevated, and longer than one-half total length of skull. Braincase is globular. Condylo-basal lengths are 12-14 mm. There is a geographical trend of size increase in overall size from west to east in Cuba. Subspecies fuliginosus is larger than quadridens externally and cranially.

Habitat. Forest patches, semi-open areas, and near streams to forage and caves to roost. The Sooty Mustached Bat is commonly found foraging in the same habitats as Macleay’s Mustached Bat.

Food and Feeding. Sooty Mustached Bats eat a wide diversity of insects, including moths, beetles, flies, hymenopterans, homopterans, hemipterans, and orthopterans. It has been suggested that they are opportunistic feeders. Consumption of spiders was reported by different sources and has been associated with hovering ability.

Breeding. The Sooty Mustached Bat is monoestrous and uniparous; there is one case of twins. Mating season starts in January. Pregnant females are most common in May but have been reported in February—June. Lactation occurs in June-September and peaks in July. Infants form dense clusters of 50-200 individuals in caves.

Activity patterns. There is evidence of temporal separation in activity of the Sooty Mustached Bat from other species occupying the same cave. It is the first to leave the cave at dusk or a few minutes before sunset. In Cuba, it has initial activity peak lasting four hours after sunset and becomes active again before sunrise. It usually forages at lower heights in the forest understory than Macleay’s Mustached Bat and the Antillean Ghost-faced Bat ( Mormoops blainviller). Echolocation calls during search phase consist of short CF-FM pulses of c.4 milliseconds, with 2-3 harmonics. Second harmonic is usually most intense and starts with short CF component at ¢.83 kHz and ends at c.62 kHz. Recorded calls of enclosed Sooty Mustached Bats had shorter duration and greater bandwidth than echolocation calls normally found from freeflying bats.

Movements, Home range and Social organization. Large colonies of Sooty Mustached Bats are commonly reported in hot and humid caves in association with other mormoopids and phyllostomids but in spatially separated clusters. They seem to be more restricted by roost conditions than larger congeners, occupying caves with elevated temperature (over 35°C). They can fly up to 9 km between roosts and foraging sites, and some individuals were able to return to their roost from distances up to 30 km. Males and females can disappear from the roost sites during mating season. There is evidence of sexual segregation during maternity period at least in some areas.

Status and Conservation. Classified as Least Concern on The IUCN Red List. The Sooty Mustached Bat is one of the most abundant bat species in Cuba and Puerto Rico and the least common mormoopid in Jamaica.

Bibliography. Genoways et al. (2005), Gray (1843a), Gundlach (1840), Macias & Mora (2003), Macias et al. (2006), Mancina et al. (2012), Morgan (2001), Rodriguez-Duran & Kunz (1992), Silva-Taboada (1976a, 1979), Simmons & Conway (2001), Smith (1972).

Figures

1. Antllean Ghost-faced Bat (Mormoops blainuviller), 2. Peters’s Ghostfaced Bat (Mormoops megalophylla), 3. Davy’s Naked-backed Bat (Pteronotus davyi), 4. Thomas's Naked-backed Bat (Pteronotus fulvus), 5. Big Naked-backed Bat (Pteronotus gymnonotus), 6. Macleay’s Mustached Bat (Pleronotus macleayii), 7. Sooty Mustached Bat (Pleronotus quadridens), 8. Wagner's Lesser Mustached Bat (Pteronotus personatus), 9. Dobson’s Lesser Mustached Bat (Pteronotus psilotis), 10. Parnell’s Common Mustached Bat (Pteronotus parnellii), 11. Hispaniolan Common Mustached Bat (Preronotus pusillus), 12. Puerto Rican Common Mustached Bat (Pteronotus portoricensis), 13. Mexican Common Mustached Bat (Pteronotus mexicanus), 14. Mesoamerican Common Mustached Bat (Pteronotus mesoamericanus), 15. Allen’s Common Mustached Bat (Pleronotus fuscus), 16. Paraguana Common Mustached Bat (Pteronotus paraguanensis), 17. Womurs Common Mustached Bat (Pteronotus rubiginosus), 18. Amazonian Common Mustached Bat (Pteronotus alitonus)

Subspecies and Distribution. P.q.quadridensGundlach,1840—Cuba. P. q. fuliginosusJ. E. Gray, 1843 — Jamaica , Hispaniola, and Puerto Rico .